Iran Fake Missile Photo

A photo from Iran's Sepah News, featured on the front pages of newspapers across the world on July 9, 2008, purported to show four successful launches of Iranian short-range missiles, as part of a show of strength against a potential Israeli attack. However, the authenticity of the image, as well as a variety of claims about the military exercise, were subsequently reported to have been debunked.

Fast Facts

1. Date of initial photo publication: July 9, 2008
2. Four missiles shown launched in faked photo¹
3. Another version, thought to be genuine, shows three missiles with unfired missile still in launcher
4. Missile may have malfunctioned
5. Iran's Revolutionary Guard may have faked image out of embarrassment at malfunction
6. Faked image appeared on front page of The New York Times, Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune
7. Sepah News published 3-missile photo following day without comment
8. Dust cloud and missile exhaust identical on two fired missiles in faked photo

Other Inconsistencies

As reported July 12 in The New York Times, the photo was not the only aspect of the military exercise falsely reported by Sepah News. Though initial reports stated that the missile test used an advanced version of Iran's Shahab 3 missile with an extended range, analysts said that the model appeared to be the standard Shahab 3.² In addition, a video giving the impression of simultaneous launches may have actually been footage of one missile filmed from multiple angles.²

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